Thirteen European countries and Japan have condemned Israel’s decision earlier in the month to approve 19 new Jewish settlements in the Occupied West Bank saying the move harmed the prospects for long term peace and security in the region.
“Such unilateral actions, as part of a wider intensification of the settlement policies in the West Bank, not only violate international law but also risk fueling instability,” they said in a joint statement.
The Israeli cabinet approved the legalization and establishment of 19 settler outposts on December 11, according to an Israeli source familiar with the matter. Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, himself a settler, announced the move in a social media…
